June 26 (UPI) -- A Southwest Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Houston diverted to Corpus Christi, Texas, after a passenger attempted to open an emergency exit door mid-flight, the airline said.
Flight 4519 was diverted to Corpus Christi on Sunday after its captain was notified of a "potential threat" aboard the plane, an airline statement said.
An unidentified passenger paced up and down the aisle of the plane and attempted to open an emergency door while the plane was in flight, witnesses said. They added she shouted outbursts at Los Angeles International Airport while awaiting the flight, and questioned why she was permitted to fly.
As she attempted to open the emergency exit aboard the plane, she was tackled and subdued by a passenger, Pamela Michenow, an off-duty officer of the Cleveland, Texas, Independent School District.
"She had observed the irrational passenger attempting to open the exit door in midflight. Fearing for her safety and the safety of everyone on the plane, she took action and was able to restrain the passenger. She had no choice but to identify herself as a law enforcement officer and take immediate action," Cleveland ISD Police Chief Rex Evans said late Sunday after speaking with Michenow.
The flight landed in Corpus Christi, where "local authorities met the aircraft at a gate and removed the disruptive passenger," the airline statement said. After a 5-hour delay in Corpus Christi, it arrived safely in Houston.
